Many people like eating snacks, especially the kind you find on the streets. Some steer clear of all street food after seemingly innocent chuanr left them with horrible intestinal distress. Many of the following snacks are rumored to contain hogwash oil. Hogwash oil isn’t some kind of complicated way to indicate we’re pulling your leg – hogwash oil is actually refined, inedible waste oil which should never be eaten and if not disposed of properly can cause terrible pollution. It’s also becoming a big business in China. If you routinely enjoy street food, and want to keep it that way, you might not want to read on.

1. Stinky Tofu (Smelly Tofu) 臭豆腐
Hazard rating: ★★★★
Preference rating: ★★★
Rumored to contain: Ferrous sulfate, alum, scrap heap
Accusation: Chemical ferrous sulfate is used to dye the tofu black

2. Hot-hot-hot Malatang 麻辣烫
Hazard rating: ★★★★★
Preference rating: ★★★★
Rumored to contain: opium, hogwash oil, Hydrogen Peroxide, formalin, PPA
Accusation: Malatang is really opium soup

3. Embryo Egg 毛鸡蛋
Hazard rating: ★★★★★
Preference rating: ★★★
Rumored to contain: Parasites and germs
Accusation: Contains many harmful bacteria

4. Chuanr 烤肉串
Hazard rating: ★★★★
Preference rating: ★★★★
Rumored to contain: Stray cats, pigs, nitrite
Accusation: Selling cat meat as mutton. Is the kabob you eat really mutton?

5. Steamed Dumplings 包子
Hazard rating: ★★
Preference rating: ★★★★★
Rumored to contain: pork sarcoma, plaster
Accusation: Pork sarcoma are used by some bad sellers as the filling of the dumplings

6. Deep-Fried Pancakes and Deep-Fried Dough Sticks (You Tiao) 油饼、油条
Hazard rating: ★★★
Preference rating: ★★★★★
Rumored to contain: Too much aluminum, DDVP, hogwash oil
Accusation: Too much aluminum and DDVP are used in deep-fried dough sticks

7. Seafood Sidewalk Booth 海鲜排挡 
Hazard rating: ★★★
Preference rating: ★★★★
Rumored to contain: Parasites, mercury, formaldehyde
Accusation: There’s formaldehyde in the seafood

8. Jian Bing 煎饼果子 
Hazard rating: ★★★
Preference rating: ★★★★
Rumored to contain: Hogwash oil, pigment of citron yellow and expired ham
Accusation: Some street sellers are using dirty hogwash oil to cook the think pancakes

9. Roasted Sweet Potato 烤红薯
Hazard rating: ★★★
Preference rating: ★★
Key words: Chemical barrel and Alternaria brassicicola
Accusation: The barrel they’re using to roast the sweet potatoes once held chemicals

10. Fried Chicken Wings 炸鸡翅 
Hazard rating: ★★
Preference rating: ★★★★
Rumored to contain: sweet potato powder, rotten chicken wings
Accusation: Spicy chicken wings are made of rotten chicken wings in some fast food restaurants

Read the original in Chinese at people.com.cn

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Related Links:

Interest in Organic Food on the Rise in China
Eat This and get Cancer; Eat This and Live
Wo Chi Su – Being a Vegetarian in China
Guide to Street Food

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